The Quireboys and Wolfsbane
JB’s, Dudley
Concert review by Debbie Bennett

For many of the rock fans I stood among on Saturday night, it must’ve been like stepping back 20 years, when a young man from Newcastle on Tyne was on the road with his band.

It was the era of good-time rock’n'roll, before the onslaught of grunge.

Check out our gig photo gallery below

This weekend’s packed out gig at JBs was a 20-year celebration and a recreation of that tour.

Quireboys vocalist Spike – who now lives in Bilston – discovered recently that the original album A Bit of What You Fancy was out of print and saw it as an opportunity to re-release it as a special edition, tour with it, and take original support band Wolfsbane back on the road.

So it was a real party atmosphere at the Dudley venue, Midlands rockers Wolfsbane opening their set with Steel, and Dudley-based frontman Blaze Bayley on form growling at his fans as they leapt around and tried to outsing him.

The former Iron Maiden singer made time for the odd joke about his fine physique being a little more rounded than it used to be, and belted out favourites including Money to Burn and Temple of Rock, finishing off the hour-long set with a rocking rendition of Springsteen’s Born to Run.

The Quireboys’ opener, Mayfair, kept the party going, while Don’t Bite The Hand and Tramps & Thieves blended perfectly with the more solemn Whipping Boy and tragic I Don’t Love You Anymore, Spike’s trademark raspy blues vocals and harmonica skills adding to the nostalgia.

The whole venue was in fine voice by the second half of the set, which was A Bit of What You Fancy’s tracklist in order, favourites being 7 O’clock and the infectious 1989 Top 20 hit Hey You.

Blaze joined the boys on stage for the encore of Sex Party which rounded off a feel-good gig like no other.